Top-guard for automobiles.



J. H. GIRSCH.

TOP GUARD-FOR AUTOMOBlLESQ APPLICATION FILED Dec. 4. m5.

1,209,285; Patented Dec.19,1916.

@TATES PATENT @FFEQE.

' JOHN H. GIRSQH, OF AURORA, ILLINOIS' To all whom it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, JOHN H. Greson, a citir zen of the United States, residing at Aurora, in the county of Kane and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Top-Guards for Automobiles, of which the following is a specification. v

My invention relates to an automobile at-. tachment for facilitating the raising and lowering of the top. V

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a readily detachable connector exan enlarged side elevation with tending between the front and rear bow bracket of a top to assist in the carrying forward or rearwardly of the front set of bows in erecting or lowering the top.

It is a well known fact that in the form of automobile tops where the bows are separable and carried from the rear of the car forwardly to points adjacent the front seat great difficulty is'encountered when a single operator attempts to raise or lower the top. The work is comparatively simple when two operators are available and one can stand at each side of the car, but a single operator finds it extremely difficult to raise or lower such a top since the widely separated ends of the front bows which must be carried forward or the back as the case may be are extremely unwieldy and hard to handle.

More particularly the object of my invention is to provide'a pair of removable guideways which may be readily connected to the forward and rear set of bow supporting brackets so as to provide supporting guide ways for the lower ends of the forward set of bows enabling the operator to slide them forwardly or rearwardly at will to positions where they readily engage with the respective brackets.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side eleva tion of an automobile with top erected showing my bow guide in place. Fig. 2 is g a portion of the center being removed. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4: is a vertical sectional view on the line 44 of Fig. 2, and Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings wherein I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention the numeral 10 indicates the body of a motor car carrying a top 11 supported Specification of Letters Patent.

TOP-GUARD ron AUTOMOBILES.

Patented Dec. 19, 1916.

7 Application filed December 4, 1915. Serial No. 64,954.

upon arear set'of bows indicated in general by the numeral 1.2 and a front set of bows indicated in general by the numeral 13; The rear set of bows comprise an upright 14: and rearwardly extending bow l5 pivotally connected to the vertical bow 14: at point 16. The forwarder front set of bows 13 comprise specifically a vertical upright bow 16 to which is .pivotally connected 2. forwardly extending bow 17 at the point 18.

Projecting outwardly from the'body of the car and rigidly secured thereto are a pair of bow supporting brackets positioned at each side of the car, the rear set of brackets being indicated by the numeral 19 and the forward set of brackets by the numeral 20. The lower end of the rear vertical bow 14c has an L-shaped projection having an opening 21 at its forward end and a second opening 22 at the intersection of the legs jecting arm 23 formed on its lower end which, when the top is in its collapsed or folded position, engages with the opening 21 of the rear bow, and when in elevated or extended position, engages in an eye 24- formed on the front bracket 20. The end of'the arm 23 is perforated as at 25 to receive a cotter pin 26 for retaining the bow within either of the eyelets referred to.

From the above it is obvious that when the top is to be elevated the out-turned arms 23 on the lower end of the front vertical how 16 must be removed 21 in the rear brackets and carried forwardly and inserted through the eyes 24 on the front brackets. As the ends of the bows are spaced a considerable distance apart, depending on the width of the car, it is extremely diflicult for a single operator to make this change. To simplify this operation I have provided a pair of guide members, indicated in general by the numeral 27, adapted to bridge over the space between the brackets the lower ends of the front bows in their movement forward or backward. Throughout the major portion of its length the guide member 27 is of channel shape, having a bottom wall 28, side walls 29 and 30 and a partial top wall 31 which extends from the outer side inwardly a suflicient distance to permit the raising or the low- The lower end of the y from the openings I and guidingly support overlie the end of the arm 23 but leaving a space or channel sufficiently wide to permit the passage of the vertical bow member 16.

At the rear end the guide member is provided with a notched part 32 which is horizontally arranged to permit engagement with the outstanding bracket 19. The front end of the guide is provided with a downwardly opening notched bracket 33 for engagement with the front bow bracket 20. Obviously the connection is made by sliding the guide member rearwardly until the notch of bracket 32 engages the bow bracket 19, when the rear end of the top has been raised, after which the front end of the guide member is dropped downwardly until the notch of the member 33 engages the front bracket.

When the member 27 is in place the shoul-- swung upwardly and outwardly to slip over.

the L-shaped lower end of the end bracket 19, after the bow 14 has been raised to vertical position in the operation of raising the top to hold the rear portion thereof in raised position. At the front end of the guide member a second latch 36 is pivotally connected as at 36 to be turned from a vertical to a horizontal plane, a stop pin 37 being provided to normally hold it from swinging past a horizontal plane. This latch engages with the end of the bracket 20 and holds the guide channel bar securely in position to prevent lateral displacement. At either end of the channel, 38, formed within the walls 28, 29 and 30, are provided outwardly extending openings 39 and 40, through the wall 30 to permit lateral movement of the arm 23, on the lower end of the forward bow 16 into or out of the longitudinal channel of the guide.

In operating my device the driver, if he wishes to raise his top to elevated position, first raises the top to vertical position and then passes the latch 34 over the L of bracket 19, which is now in horizontal position, to hold the top in this raised position, he then takes members 27 and fastens the ends to the parts of the brackets 19. The cotter pins 26 are then removed from the ends 23 of the Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents are thus'guidedly supported in the chan-' nels 38 and can be readily slid forward until they are opposite the front openings 40' when they are moved outwardly and into engagement withthe eyelets 2 1 of the front brackets 20. The top is thenin elevatedposition and the cotter pins 26 can then be inserted to hold the ends 23 in the eyelets. The channel bar members are then removed and stored away for further use.

The vertically extend'ng brackets 39 are provided to prevent the bows 16 from moving too far forwardly when they are first raised and while resting in the openings 21. The brackets, 10 prevent them from tilting too far backward after they havebeen moved forward and placed in the brackets 20 and before they are permanently secured in place by guy wires or other means usually .used for this purpose.

Whereas I have illustrated and described a single embodiment of my invention it is obvious that'various changes may be made from the particular disclosure without departing from the spirit andscope ofthe appended claim.

Having described my invention, what I claim is The combination with the front and rear top bows and their carrying brackets, the rear bows having right angle extensions near their connection with the brackets for engagement with the frontbows when the top is collapsed, of a detachable guide member arranged at each end for connection with the said brackets, said member having top, bottom and side walls, with a portion of the top wall removed to form. a longitudinal channel in which the lower end of the front .bow may be guidedly supported in its movement between its rear collapsed position and its front erected position, the end portion of one wall being cut away to permit insertion in or removal of the bow end from the channel, and a latch pivotally connected with the guide member near the rear thereof for engagement with the right angle extension of the rear bow when in its erected In the presence of FORE'E BAIN, MARY F. ALLEN.

each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0.

JOHN H. emson. 

